CEA President Rhonda Johnson welcomed well over 100 teachers to the ranks of the Columbus Education Association at the New Teacher Luncheon held on August 21st.

“You join 4,000 of the most competent, caring and qualified teachers in the state and nation,” said Johnson. “The Columbus Education Association will continue to tirelessly advocate for your rights as an individual and your profession in general.”

With so many new teachers starting the year in Columbus City Schools, your Association calls upon the collective experience of the thousands of teachers in CCS to offer helpful advice and tips to our newest colleagues.

Reflecting back to your first year of teaching, what are three tips you wish you had been given before beginning your first day as an educator?

You don’t have to be registered to leave a reply—simply click on the “Comments” link below, type your first name (or a screen name of your choice), email address and leave your top three tips in the fields provided. Once your reply has been moderated, it will be added.

It’s not April 1st, nor has this site become affiliated with The Onion. Teachers in Zimbabwe were awarded over a 1,000% raise, bringing their lowest paid teachers’ salary up to $63 billion (Zimbabwe dollars) per month.

Keep in mind that inflation is raging in Zimbabwe at roughly 1.7 million percent (though the government estimates it’s currently at 170,000%) so the lowest-paid Zimbabwean teacher would earn roughly $2,100 US dollars per month. The Zimbabwean teachers’ union has asked for $76 billion, and authorities in the country estimate that a family of six needs on average $100 billion per month to live on.

Leo Casey is Vice President of Academic High Schools in United Federation of Teachers in New York City. He is a frequent contributor to Edwize, the UFT Blog.

Criticizing A Nation At Risk is akin to spearing fish in a barrel. A document filled with extravagant hyperbole and vast unsupported generalizations, it is a target rich environment. There is little question that it has not aged well in the twenty-five years since it was published.